Oil pumping apparatus



May 17, 1932. B. OLSSON 1,858,682

- OIL PUMPING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 15, 1928 `compartment 10 which is to cleaned.

Patented May 17, 1932 UNITED STATES BENGT OLSSON,

PATENT oFFijcE* NEW YORK, N. Y.

OIL ZPUMPING APPARATUS Application led September 15, 1928. Serial No.` 306,111.

My invention relates to an apparatusand `method whereby viscous material like oil, Vmolasses and heavy sludge may be` pumped by a conventional force pump.

The device is specially adapted to be installed on board tankers and oil burning vessels and connected to their regular ballast pumps. I Y

My invention has for its object to provide an upright vacuum chamber between the pump and the pump line proper. This upright vacuum chamber is at its middle connected to the pump line and at its lower part to the discharge pump and its upper part is also connected to a vacuum creating device and by a non-return by-pass line to the pump intake proper. Y

The invention also provides a flexible hose '2b which may be attached to the pipe line at any convenient point and led into any of the oil tanks in the ships bottom.

My invention further discloses a method whereby thenature of the viscousvmaterial is so changed that it becomes pumpable by a conventional force pump.

In the drawings Figure 1 shows my preferred apparatus installed on board an oil burning vessel and connected to a conventional reciprocating bilge or ballast pump which is shown provided 'with a strainer or mud boX. o

Figure 2 shows my device when used in connection with a centrifugal bilge pump on board the same ship.A l Y Referring to the drawings in which like reference characters designate corresponding parts, 1 represents the oilburning vessel on which the reciprocating bilge pump 2, the bilge pump line 3, the mud box 4 and the discharge lines 5 and 6 are installed. l y

At a convenientplace in the bilge line 3 the T-connection 7 is provided and the flexible hose 8 is attached to said connection.

The hose 8 is led into the double bottom oit' the Yvessel through the manhole 9 into the be pumped and The upright vacuum chamber 1l, preferably a pipe of six or eight inches diameter is vided with a The valve 14 is provided in the bilge line and the valve 15 is provided in the connec- Y tion pipe` 16.

On top of the chamber 11 a steam operated air exhauster 17 is mounted and connected 0F ELTINGVILLE, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR T0l CHARLES- J'. @NEILL V02|? of the bilge 1i'ne`3 and pro# to a convenient steam pipe 18 and exhaust line 19.

The by-pass line 20 connects the top of the pipe chamber 11 with the pump intake proper and the check valve 21 is inserted in this line.

When a centrifugal pump is used the arrangement is as shown 1n Figure 2.

The centrifugal pump 2 replaces lthe reciprocating pump and the mud vbox is dispensed with. Atthe discharge end of the centrifugal pump 2 a check valve 22 is provided. t the upper part of the pipe chamber 11 the vacuum relief valve 23 is installed.

The actionV of the` apparatus is as follows z-f g Either the `overboard discharge 5 or the discharge line 6 isopened. `The valve 14 is closed and the valves 12 and 15 are opened.

The bilge pump and the steamoperated air exhauster are started and the end of the hose 8 is dipped into the viscous material which is to be removed f from the c0mpartment 10.

It is to be noted that the end of the leX- ible hose is only partially dipped into the material so that air` together with viscous material will enterinto the transmission line during the operation.

With the intake end sealed in the manner l ton slug is violently discharged bilge line is also distinctly a wave transmission until the wave reaches the vertical pipe 16 through which the wave will travel in form of a solid piston which is forcibly discharged into the pipe chamber 1l which iii the meantime hasbeeii practically emptied 'by the bilge pump. y

The'piston slug will therefore forcibly inipinge upon the liquid in the bottom of the pipe chamber and any air or water which was imprisoned in the viscous material in form of bubbles .will be liberated by the impact and carried away respectively by the exhauster and the bilge pump.

It is to be noted that all the horizontal runs of hose f and bilge line are always partially filled by a layer of the pumped material on the surface of which the wave transmission takes place.

It is also to'be noted that the heavy loil sludge in a sliips bottom is an extremely viscous and stable air and water emulsion which cannot be pumped by a force pump. yThis emulsion is however effectively broken up by the violent impact in the pipe chamber rand. the emulsiony is here separated into its constituents whichare removed as previously described. Q Y

YIn my preferred apparatus the breaking down of the sludge emulsion takes place inside the pipe chamber l1 into which the pisagaiiist the liquid in the bottom of said chamber and it is therefore of the greatest importance to provide .means which will positively .insure Y a perfect supply and discharge balance iii said pipe chamber.

I therefore provide in said chamber lan iiiverted inlet near the middle of the chamber .fand a noiireturn by-pass line from the upper part thereof to the pump intake proper'. Y

VShould the slug discharge from the bil'ge line be in excess of the pump delivery the inverted inlet willbe momentarilysealed and the wave transmission through the bilge line will be stopped until the surplus is carried:

away. y

The vacuum in the pipe chamber fluctuates with each piston wave, but the Vchecky valve 2l insures a steady maximum vacuum in the bypass line 20. y n A VAs the sealing of the inverted inlet takes place justr when a slug has beendischargedV The pipe Q0 acts repository of the mom the vacuum in the pipe chamber is at this instant low while a higher vacuum prevails iiiside the by-pass line 20.

The'surplus will therefore be drawn up in the pipe 2O from which it is withdrawn by `the bilge pump in the interim preceding the dischargeV of the, next slug. fV

therefore kas* a. temporary l entary slug surplus. Thispipe also constitutes an escape of air Vwhich may have been carriedfover from the lVlCllllIIl gauge;

viiigfrom the spirit and scope of my inveiition.

An apparatus with which I have successfully pumped and cleaned the oil tanks of oceank going Steamers through their regular bilge lines comprised a 6 pipe chamber pron vided with a 2f nonreturn by-pass. The pipe chamber was about l2 high.

The capacity of than one hundred cubic feet per minute and the vacuum in the pipe chamber fluctuated between i and 8 inches as indicated on the in feeding the bilge line.

I claim l. In a pumping apparatus an upright vacuum chamber, a pump suction connected to the lower part of said chamber and a direct nonreturn by-pass from said pump suction to the upper part of said chamber.

A 3 flexible hose was used the air exhauster was less 2. In a pumping apparatus an upright vacu uum chamber, a pump suction connected to the lower part of said chamber, a substantially horizontal transmission line, an inverted inlet from said transmissionline adapted to be sealed during pumping connected to said chamber and means yfor creating a vacuum connected to the upper part of said chamber.

3. In a pumping apparatus an uprightvacuum chamber, a pump suction connected tothe lower part of'sa-id chamber. a direct non return rby-pass connection fromv the pump suction to v the upper part of-said chamber and a substantially horizontal transmission line entering the chamber at a point lower than said bypass connection. j r

4. The method of pumping a stable viscous emulsion characterized by creating a low vacuuum in a receptacle admitting vair at the suction end` of thetransmission line to thereby accelerate a: slug wave horizontally, instan- `taneously arresting the slug wave in said receptacle and withdrawing the material from said' receptacle by a force pump.

e 5. In a pumping device, in combination, a substantially horizontal transmission line Afor liquid material, an upright vacuumchamber, said transmission line being connected to fthe central part of said chamber, said chamber extending upwards and above the transmission line, a discharge at the bottom of said chamber Vand a nonreturn vacuum by pass izo iao

from said discharge vacuum chamber.

6. In a pumping device, in combination, a substantially horizontal transmission line for liquid material, an upright vacuum chamber, said transmission line being connected to the central part of said chamber, said chamber extending upwards and above the transmission line, a discharge at the bottom of said chamber, a pump connected to said discharge, a nonreturn vacuum by pass from said discharge to the top of the upright vacuum chamber and strainer means interposed between the vacuum chamber and the nonreturn by-pass.

7. A device adapted for the attachment to a reciprocating bilge pump on board maritime vessels comprising in combination a flexible hose connected to the bilge suction line and adapted to be led into the double bottom compartments of the vessel, an upright pipe superimposed on top of the bilge line at the suction end of the strainer or mud box, a bypass from the bilge suction line to the middle part of the upright pipe, a vacuum suction from the upper part of said pipe and a nonreturn by-pass from the pump intake to the upper part of said upright pipe.

8. In a pumping device for liquid material a vacuum chamber, a pump suction from the chamber, means for creating a fluctuating vacuum in the vacuum chamber, an additional repository connected to the pump suction and extending upwards and a nonreturn connection leading from the upper part of the additional repository to the upper part of the chamber.

9. In a pumping device for liquid material, a vacuum chamber, a pump suction from the chamber, means for creating a uctuating vacuum in the vacuum chamber, an additional repository connected to the pump suction and extending upwards, a nonreturn connection leading from the upper part of the additional repository to the upper part of the chamber and means preventing the iooding of said chamber.

BENGT OLSSON.

to the top of the upright 

